Lentil Soup With Potatoes

This is the perfect, hearty soup for the currently dropping temperatures. Autumn is associated with so many yummy things, a chunky, filling soup among them. The cubed potatoes add nice texture and extra warmth. My vegetarian daughter loves this recipe. I made it for her for Rosh Hashanah, but my other guests all wanted some too. This feeds a crowd, so cut the recipe in half for a smaller group of 2 to 4. You can always freeze the leftovers, and add vegetable stock to thin it out when reheating.

Ingredients:
A bag of red lentils, rinsed and checked
A diced Spanish onion
Four celery stalks, diced
A bay leaf
Several sprigs of fresh thyme or rosemary, in a bouquet garni mesh bag
Two tbsp red wine vinegar
Five Idaho potatoes, cleaned, peeled, and cut into an inch dice
12 to 16 cups vegetable stock (I have four boxes on hand, since the lentils expand and get thick)
A tsp each garlic powder and Italian seasoning
2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground pepper
3/4 packed cup each fresh chopped parsley and dill 

In a large soup pot, sauté the onion in 3 tbsp olive oil for about 5 min, until it starts to get really fragrant and translucent. Add the red wine vinegar as the pot starts to dry up, to prevent the onion from burning. Add the garlic power and Italian seasoning. This gives the onion, the base, a fantastic flavor to carry the soup. Add 1/4 of veg stock as needed, to keep the moisture in the pot. Add the diced carrots and celery with maybe 1/2 cup of stock, cover pot, and sweat the vegetables for about 5 minutes until tender. Add the rest of the ingredients. Stir well, bring to a boil over medium heat, reduce to low and simmer for 45 minutes to an hour. The lentils will partially disintegrate, which will be a nice pairing with the other diced vegetables; the carrots, celery, and potatoes. Add stock as needed to keep soup from thickening too much. Remove bay leaf and bouquet garni before serving, and add salt and pepper to taste. I always start with less and then add. I love to serve this in earthenware mini crocks, for a homey feel.